Early Dogs Were Already More Diverse Than We Thought

Click here to read the complete article
322 – February, 2026

By Caroline Coile

The domestic dog is the most diverse species on earth. Nowhere is this more evident than in the dog show world. While much of this variation is due to the separation of breeds and further selection for oddities during the Victorian age, there were already loads of variations before then, based upon selection for function. We tend to think of that variation as first arising during ancient Egyptian times, when we find evidence of coursing and warrior dogs, and later in Roman times, when even toy dogs joined the party. But when did dogs really start to fractionate?

It’s not an easy question to answer. It’s hard enough figuring out when dogs were domesticated. It’s currently believed that domestication occurred in multiple places and times. DNA evidence suggests the first domestic dogs appeared around 11,000 years ago. Fossil evidence suggests an older date, possibly as early as 33,000 years ago, according to one study.

The problem is that both DNA and morphological evidence rely on bones, and it’s hard to decide whether canid bones were from wild or domesticated canids. Only when there’s evidence of purposeful burial can we be pretty sure the canid was a domesticated dog. Thus, an adult canid and puppy buried alongside a person in northern Europe from around 15,000 years ago is almost certainly from domesticated dogs, and DNA from those bones gives us a solid estimate it occurred at least 15,000 years ago.

Now, a study published this month in the journal Science provides the first evidence of canid diversity at a far earlier date than previously assumed.

Click here to read the complete article
322 – February, 2026

Short URL: https://caninechronicle.com/?p=348887

Posted by AnthonyA on Feb 16 2026. Filed under Current Articles, Featured. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. Both comments and pings are currently closed.